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dragon politics and law
Dragons (Politics and Law)

Contents:

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Present

Pre-history

In the earliest known days of dragonkind, dragons lived in communities. Dozens to a hundred dragons living in close proximity as a pack, united against the dangerous, untamed wilds. In these communities, it was the eldest dragons who ruled—those few who survived into old age. Often, these dragons were also among the strongest in the community, thus part of a handful that protected the eggs and young. This role would, after the Unification, become known as 'Guardian'.

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History

After the Unification, the title of Guardians were created. The four Elementals who brought peace between the elements became the first Guardians, and were elected rulers of an united Warfang.

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When Warfang dragons returned to their continents of Titan Fields, Agni Flats, and Concurrent Skies, the distance became a problem. This was before the days of portals, and parents had to brave the seas to bring their eggs to the Temple. As such, new Temples were built and new, local Guardians were elected. These Guardians would govern their continents in place of the original Guardians, who became known as the Elder Guardians, whose sole purpose was to govern the nation of Warfang.

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After a millennia of this system, economic and influential differences had grown among the populations of Warfang. The strongest dragon families wanted a say in Warfang's politics. To prevent conflict, the Elder Guardians created the Warfang Council, consisting of themselves and the four most influential families of each primordial element.

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After another half millennia, the Council introduced the Dragon Clan system, a status indicator to be awarded to the most noteworthy of dragon bloodlines.

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The second major change came around the year 2500, when the pressure on the Council to represent mixed blood dragons became too much. The Council caved, opening for one more clan, whose blood was mixed with all elements. This clan would represent dragons of wind and water as well.

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Present

Today, the Council has 9 members; the 4 Elder Guardians;

Elder Guardian Arcadier (Electricity)

Elder Guardian Amberius (Fire)

Elder Guardian Nivalis (Ice)

Elder Guardian Terrenus (Earth)

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and the 5 Clan Leaders;

General Tordner of Stormbringer (Electricity)

Chief Isrun of Frostspear (Ice)

General Undacus of Scions Aether (Mixed),

General Wysta of Earthwood (Earth)

Grand Judge Solari of Golden Flare (Fire).

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The Council convenes multiple times a week to address current matters and cast votes on proposed new laws or actions proposed by a Council member on behalf of their subordinate clans. The Council may convene off schedule on short notice. It is the Council who decides on all matters from laws, taxes, service requirements, Guardians, and to war.

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Prison & Punishment

Dragons generally do not resort to use of prisons. It's considered ludicrous to give shelter and food to criminals, a waste of coin. Most use of incarceration is simply jail time; locking up a suspected criminal until they receive sentencing or have their name cleared.

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The most usual punishment to small crimes are lashings or beatings. These do not warrant a court, here the Guard is judge and executioner. Usually one can get out of this by paying a fine instead, or the other way around; the criminal is told to pay a fee, and if they refuse or can't pay, they are beaten.

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More serious crimes are given permanent punishment, such as amputation (finger, paw, outer wing finger, whole wing, or tongue, usually fitting the nature of their crime. Eyes and tail are not targeted). This can also be at the Guard's discretion, but may also be a sentence from a Judge.

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Further still, sentences that must come from a Judge or the Council include forced labor or forced military service, or deprivation of water, food and sleep (in tandem with incarceration that doesn't last more than a few moons).

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The most grievous crimes are punished by execution. This is common. Clan dragons, the rich, and notorious are rarely ever on the chopping block, even for terrible crimes (unless their victims are their equals or superiors). The low and middle class are overrepresented in executions.

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Executions became more common after exile lost its appeal (originally, exiles were sent to the Dark Lands; a perceived death sentence. At least, that was until it was discovered the Dark Lands were inhabited by Dark Dragons, and that some exiles had actually survived there. Exiles became a security concern, and this punishment ended in favor of executions.

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Executions are usually not public, unless the Guard wants to make an example, or the public calls for it. Executions are carried out through beheadings.

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Aside from keeping suspects in jail until they are seen in court (which can take moons), or the incarceration of those younger than 18 (as Warfang doesn't want to maim future soldiers—criminals between 18 and 24 may be sent to early military service) prison time is used for a small number of specific criminals. These will be powerful dragons (elementally or magically) that refuse, despite torture and deprivation, to engage in forced labor, but who cannot be set free due to the danger they pose. They are dragons that Warfang does not want to execute because they want to put them in military service (often return them to military service), but who need 'rehabilitation'. 

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They may also be individuals that the Guard wants to keep coming back to, such as former leaders of organized crime.

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Each District in Sector One has a set of cells, a dungeon, for short term incarceration. For longer term incarceration, there are a handful of prisons located away from any city or town.

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Prison

Laws

Things that are forbidden by law, including but not limited to;

  • Murder

    • Wherein an individual kills another for any reason that isn't self defense or the defense of others, or where the murderer is not acting on behalf of or with permission from the Council, i.e. executioner, soldier, guard, gladiator, etc.

      • Due to Guard corruption, the murder of the poor and 'insignificant' is rarely given enough resources to be fully followed up on. Murder against clan dragons or those from noteworthy families are taken the most serious. Cases where a clanned or rich/high status dragon kills a poor/unknown dragon or a citizen of another race, the Guard will bury, as long as the killer's clan or family will compensate them (the Guard itself) for it.

        • More morally aligned clans/families may still do this and then punish their member privately, so as to not damage their clan/family reputation and position.​

      • If clan on clan murder happens, the clans are usually allowed to sort it out privately, either with monetary/material compensation, or eye-for-eye. The Guard looks the other way. 

    • Usually, the punishment for murder is execution, but judges can often be swayed by other dragons in power—for example, a Commander from a more powerful clan wanting their soldier accused of murder to receive a lighter sentence of continued, forced military service.​​​

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  • Theft and Property Destruction

    • Wherein someone steals or damages property not belonging to them. This includes trying to free someone's slaves/indentured servants/indebted wards or killing farm animals. Most thieves are caught by bounty hunters, unless they are caught in the act by the Guard.​

    • Simple theft such as pickpocketing is just made note of when reported, without a description there is little the Guard can do. When there are physical descriptions to go off of (dragons are generally very visually unique and identifiable) or serial crimes seemingly perpetrated by the same individual, a profile is built and a bounty is put out. The Guard generally doesn't have the resources to pursue petty/small time theft and so will allow bounty hunters to do the work, though they will still make an arrest if a thief is recognized. When the victims are high class and the monetary loss is high, the Guard will investigate and pursue by themselves.

    • Usually, the punishment for theft is cutting off the thief's fingers/paw, or wing, depending on severity of the crime. This may be done on the spot by the Guard. The thief may instead or in addition be made to 'pay back' their debt in disproportionate slave labor. If the thief is under 24, they will serve some prison time instead but may also or instead receive lashes. When the cost of damages/theft is very high, even if in the case of theft the coin/valuables are returned, the thief/thieves may be executed.

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  • Assault ([content warning] including sexual assault)

    • Wherein someone severely wounds another for any reason that isn't self defense or the defense of others. This includes sexual assault wherein penetration occurs without consent.​ Verbal or non-penetrative assault is ignored by the Guard except in cases where the victim is a clan dragon or otherwise of note, and especially in these cases when the perpetrator is neither. Age of consent is 18, any sexual acts towards a dragon under 18 when the perpetrator is above 18 is considered assault. 

    • Punishments for assault may be lashes, forced labor, amputation of a limb or body part (including sexual organs), sterilization, or in extreme or repeat offense cases, or cases involving minors, execution. If a victim is poor/low class, the Guard rarely prioritizes the case unless pressured to.

      • It's difficult to prove assault without witnesses, but one might be judged based simply on their merit and history. This does lead to outcasts being unfairly judged, and 'upstanding members of society' to be unjustly pardoned. False accusations also happen, usually by more powerful dragons who feel slighted by 'lesser' individuals.

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  • Destruction or disposal of viable dragon eggs

    • Wherein a dragon deliberately smashes a viable dragon egg (even one's own) or discards of one in such a way that it will be destroyed (such as leaving it in an unsafe area where it may be destroyed by accident or eaten by wildlife).

      • While technically illegal to abandon one's egg at the doorsteps of Temple orphanages, the Temples do not report parents who do this.

      • It's not uncommon for clans to engage in this act. Naturally, the Guard looks away.

    • Punishments for destruction of one's own eggs may be lashes, amputation, forced labor, and/or fines. The destruction of other dragons' eggs is considered murder and is punished with that in mind.

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  • Disruption and/or disrespect towards the Army, Guard, Templars, or Guardians

    • Wherein an individual taunts, interferes with, or attacks an on-duty Soldier, Guard, Templar, or Guardian.

    • Depending on severity, punishments can range from fines and/or lashes, amputation of limb, forced labor, or execution.

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  •  Libel/slander

    • Wherein an individual of lower status orally or in written form attacks a dragon of high stature in an attempt to defame or humiliate them with lies.​

    • While this law in theory defends powerful dragons and officials against smear campaigns, it is often invoked by high class dragons to retaliate when their egos are bruised. For example, a clan dragon hearing of a non-clan dragon bad mouthing them/their clan for something that is fully true may still call on the Guard to cut out that clanless dragon's tongue for 'slander'.

      • There have been a few cases where dragons 'guilty' of libel/slander were deemed to be planning violence against their targets, and were judged for the offense of planning assault/murder. This being, in large part, due to the 'victim' being a powerful figure in the Guard or Justice or a friend of such dragons.

      • Citizens can be punished for bad mouthing the Army, Guard, Guardians, Templars, Council, etc. in similar fashion. Warfang has no rights or concepts of free speech, and so attacking the integrity of the Warfang empire's official bodies and individuals is deemed an attack of the empire itself, and this is highly frowned upon even socially.

        • While clan dragons and other dragons of significant influence have more freedom of speech, they will either air grievances in private or ensure those they speak badly of are their equal or lesser. While they are unlikely to be punished by the Guard, if they are punching up they may face retaliation from more powerful clans and lose their own position/influence.

    • Punishment for libel/slander generally defaults to lashes, a beating, and/or a fine. More permanent punishments include cutting out the tongue/cutting off a paw (for slander/libel respectively) or even a wing, which is considered far worse. In theory, a corrupt Guard can take these punishments to any degree of severity if they so please or are paid to, to whichever lengths that will not come back to bite the Guard or the Warfang elites in the ass later. But usually, at least for first time offenses, punishments are rather light, if not simply a warning (this especially the case with teenagers and children), so as to not invoke public unrest. Repeated offenses lead to the punishments listed above.

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Subjects and laws surrounding them;

  • Alcohol​

    • ​There are no age limits on alcohol, but virtually all taverns and other establishments serving alcohol will not allow anyone younger than 20 to drink. Commoners have little other access to alcohol. Clans and the rich have their own cellars for alcohol but generally don't serve these to children.​

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  • Drugs

    • Drugs that induce highs, calmness, hallucination, drowsiness, or drugs with anesthetic effect are not illegal, even if severely impacting the user's health.

      • While it's not illegal to give such drugs to another against their will/knowledge (except in cases where the victim's health is severely impacted)​, doing this to facilitate actual crimes is a crime in of itself.

    • Drugs that cause an individual to attack others or encourages theft are illegal to own, use, produce, and sell.​

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  • Tax dodging

    • Land and trade is taxed. While failure to pay tax on one's land results in eviction and forfeiture of said land and any buildings and belongings on it, dodging trade taxes by deliberately reporting incorrect information will cause many or all of one's assets, including coin, to be taken​ by the state. If this is insufficient, lashing, amputation, forced labor, or even execution are also on the table.

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  • Draft dodging

    • Every Warfang citizen must serve the required time in the military unless excused. Failure to heed the call can result in forced service without pay and benefits, for five times the duration. Failure to comply with this will be punished by lashing, deprivation of food, water, sleep, and if all this fails to elicit compliance, final punishment is often execution.​

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Laws
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